In the manufacture of alkyl lead compounds many aqueous process streams are produced which contain dissolved organic and inorganic lead constituents. These streams represent a potential source of pollution since they possess a high lead content and for this reason must be treated to remove lead therefrom prior to disposal. When the lead present is organic in nature, and in most instances the major portion of the lead is in this state, it is difficult and often impossible to precipitate from aqueous solution.
Typically, these lead contaminated streams are formed by dropping an alkyl lead charge from the reactor in which tetraalkylleads are produced into water for recovery of the alkyl lead content thereof by subsequent steam distillation. Aqueous streams resulting from these operations normally contain both organic and inorganic lead. In conducting a redistribution reaction such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,151,141, it is typical to wash the product with an aqueous alkali metal hydroxide to remove the catalyst from the organic lead products produced in the reaction. This wash water normally contains very high concentrations of lead both as inorganic and organic species. Solutions of this type have organic lead in concentrations of 2 to 10 percent by weight frequently. Disposal of an aqueous stream such as this requires the removal of the contained lead therefrom and this has become a very difficult and bothersome problem since the majority of the dissolved lead present is organic in nature.